Sebastien Loeb took his 70th career win during the 2012 Rally Argentina, and has now pulled away with the championship lead. Loeb suffered at the early stages of the Rally from 3 spins, but Petter Solberg’s misfortune and some good setup changes helped the Frenchman surge his way from 4th to 1st.
Mikko Hirvonen threatened Loeb’s lead throughout the Rally but eventually had to maintain his position after Citroen, not wanting to throw away a 1-2, obliged him to do so.
Dani Sordo was on course for a podium finish until a last minute mechanical problem put him out of the Rally, therefore elevating Rally Portugal winner Mads Ostberg onto the last podium spot.
Thierry Neuville finished 5th, ahead of early leader Petter Solberg who dropped to 10th after breaking his Ford’s steering arm, and had to make his way back to 6th, leaving Sebastien Ogier in 7th position.
Nasser Al-Attiyah was running in 5th place before damage in his car’s suspension cost him precious time, and dropped him out of the top 10; the Qatari then raced up to 9th position, behind Evgeny Novikov in 8th.
Ott Tanak wrapped up the top 10 finishers of the 2012 Rally Argentina.
Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap 1. Sebastien Loeb Citroen 5h34m38.8s 2. Mikko Hirvonen Citroen + 15.2s 3. Mads Ostberg Adapta Ford + 3m10.4s 4. Martin Prokop Czech Ford + 9m45.3s 5. Thierry Neuville Citroen Junior + 11m17.6s 6. Petter Solberg Ford + 12m02.2s 7. Sebastien Ogier VW Skoda + 12m25.3s 8. Evgeny Novikov M-Sport Ford + 21m10.2s 9. Nasser Al-Attiyah Qatar Citroen + 28m22.6s 10. Ott Tanak M-Sport Ford + 37m19.5s